


Experiments in Telogrus Rift

by Hedonick



Series: BfA/SL: Interludes [1]
Category: World of Warcraft, World of Warcraft - Various Authors
Genre: Alchemy, Gen, Telogrus Rift, World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:29:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27882274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hedonick/pseuds/Hedonick
Summary: Luthir spent most of his time during the Fourth War in Telogrus Rift working on different experiments related to the Void and the ren’dorei. Now, things have calmed down a little, although N’Zoth still threatens Azeroth. While Luthir is thinking about whether or not he should finally confess his feelings to his mentor Magister Umbric, the priest gets visited by his friend Saewron Dawncaller. They finally find the time to discuss their experiments, although the rogue seems to act a little strange...
Series: BfA/SL: Interludes [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2041546
Kudos: 2





	Experiments in Telogrus Rift

**Author's Note:**

> Dear reader,  
> This is the first part of my new series, which takes place after the events mentioned in the previous series (BfA: Biografies); in between Patch 8.3 and Shadowlands Pre-Patch 9.0.1.  
> It will focus some more on my main characters, who will soon be drawn into a huge adventure in the Shadowlands. I’ll use the following scenes to establish their character and their relationships some more, as well as to further set their story up for what is to come…

Careful not to drop the test tube from the gripper, Luthir shifted the position of the object he was currently cleansing. The flames of the small magical fire on the brazier in front of him danced happily in shifting colors of red, blue and green, while hungrily licking the last remains of impurities from the glass without damaging the material itself. Today it was his duty to clean up their experimental battlefield along with the many different glass flasks they had used during the day. His colleagues and the Magister had already left a while ago, leaving him alone with his work.

He didn’t mind the solitude. From time to time it was relaxing to have a break from the constant discussions or chattering which usually accompanied their research, and to let his thoughts wander. His beloved Umbric. Luthir still hadn’t fully decided whether the right time to finally approach him openly had come. On one hand, things concerning their kin had settled down a bit. They all had less work to do that couldn’t be postponed and more time for themselves. Like today: it was only late afternoon and the research team had already called it a day. More and more often during those hours to himself though, Luthir craved the Magister’s company and attention to start some experiments of a whole different kind than those they performed during the working hours. But on the other hand, there was still that _small_ problem with the Old God that had everyone on edge. The priest exhaled deeply. No, most likely it was better to wait until this had been settled, too. And it would be. He had no doubts about that.

He abandoned his current train of thought and refocused on his task, reaching for another test tube. To watch the flames embrace each glass that was offered and their caressing touch on the fragile containers was mesmerizing. Luthir often completely lost himself in the spectacle, only awakening from his trance-like work when there suddenly wasn’t another used flask to grab. If not for the safety spectacles he wore, he’d probably gone blind long ago – or had been robbed of the pleasure by his rationality.

–.o.O.o.–

Today he hadn’t yet reached the last test tube, when something – or rather somebody – else suddenly interrupted his work.

“What’s that song you are humming? I have a feeling I know it from somewhere, but I can’t quite grasp it.”

The unexpected voice from right beside him made Luthir jump in alarm. The rounded flask he currently held into the flames slipped from the tongs of the gripper and he – as he so often did without his full intention – dispersed into a thick cloud of shadows. Luckily the glass landed unbroken on the table, but tumbled right over the edge in the next instant, before the priest even had a chance to react.

The rogue, however, was faster and saved the fragile object from its this time definitely fatal end on the stone floor. He first cautiously juggled it from one hand to the other, but then stopped, assessing in surprise: “It’s not even warm!”

Luthir quickly drew his body back together into its corporeal form and gestured towards the brazier: “Yeah, it’s no normal fire.”

“As I could have guessed by the colors.” Saewron shruged and smiled in apology, placing the flask carefully back on the table. “Sorry, I didn’t wanted to startle you. Thought you’d heard me. I wasn’t trying to be sneaky.”

“Well, your clothes are designed to prevent any noise, hence that doesn’t even make such a big difference – especially if your _victim_ is as deep in thought as I was”, Luthir reminded the other void elf benignly, while he lifted the goggles from his nose and put them by together with his tool.

Chuckling, he enfolded the still obviously rueful rogue in his arms salutatorily. “Never mind. After all, it was me who asked you to come. I should have been prepared. But you’ve become quite a rare sight over the last weeks!” He examined his friend with an arched eyebrow, noticing the dark rings beneath his eyes with slight worry, but also the faint blush in his otherwise ever pale cheeks that now deepened further.

“Oh, um…, yes”, Saewron squirmed visibly, brushing a hand through his dark navy hair, “I’m afraid I’ve become quite entangled with my studies at the library.”

The rogue’s flustered reaction elicited a laugh from Luthir. “No need for you to feel bad about it. You know that I admire your studies, and studies need their time!”, he added emphatically, “Eventually they also are the reason which brought you here today. Your alchemical studies at least.”

A hesitant smile returned to Saewron’s lips. “About that. Shall we head over?” He tilted his head into the direction of the floating island holding the infirmary.

Luthir had already informed him that the head of the medical team in Telogrus Rift would lead their discussion of the test results and that Alleria Windrunner wouldn’t be present. A fact that – the priest knew – had surely helped to reduce his friend’s nervousness before coming here. The particular rogue and the stern female leader of the void elves still hadn’t quite come to terms about his remaining inability to enter and hold the ren’endal in every situation, hence he usually tried to avoid a direct confrontation with her – however unfounded his fears might be in the priest’s eyes.

“Soon”, he answered, “First, let me finish up my cleaning. It won’t take long.”

“Sure. Can I assist you?”, Saewron promptly offered.

“No thanks, that’s kind of you. Just give me another few minutes”, Luthir requested, reinstalling the goggles.

When he rejoined Saewron after he’d put away the last of the now clean test tubes, a thoughtful expression rested upon his friend’s features.

“What’s on your mind?”, the priest inquired sensitively.

“You’ve started humming that melody again.”

“Oh!”, now it was Luthir’s turn to blush, a faint anger at himself blooming in his stomach. At least he hadn’t started to outright sing this time, that would have been worse. But Saewron didn’t mind his interjection, still lost in his musing.

“It reminds me of ho… of Silvermoon; maybe one of the hymns sung during the Midsummer Fire Festival in praise of the sun”, for a second a pained look crossed his face, which he tried to downplay with a short shake of his head.

Luthir was well aware that Saewron still missed his former hometown; and why wouldn’t he? He’d lived there his whole life, only to be exiled from it one day to another. At least Luthir himself and the other followers of Magister Umbric had had some days to make their decision and had more or less chosen their exile in favor of their studies.

“Although, the melody of the refrain is slightly off. But I don’t expect this to be an error on your end, since you’ve a very good ear for music”, the rogue concluded.

Luthir muttered a curse, letting himself slump against the tabletop besides Saewron, before explaining: “No, it’s not. The Heirs of the Holy Light made a habit of adapting and slightly modifying popular tunes for their own cause.”

Understanding flickered in Saewron’s eyes at the name of the cult that had heavily influenced the priest’s childhood.

“Please do me a favor and stop me the next time you hear that melody from me. I really don’t want to go on spreading their petty songs, but somehow that thought still hasn’t caught up with my subconsciousness after all these years.” Luthir had asked the same of his colleagues, but apparently they valued the sound of his voice more than his wishes and he’d already caught himself several times in the recent past with one of the damned tunes on his tongue.

“I will”, the rogue nodded, rose and started to pace back and forth in front of the tent entrance. “Maybe you just need to hear some new music, to forget the old songs”, he suggested, fiddling with the hilt of one of the almost graceful daggers that were tightly strapped to his belt. “I’ve seen the posters of the Darkmoon Fair all over the city, and they reportedly feature some really good bands.”

“Is this an invitation?”, Luthir asked defiantly.

“Um… no”, Saewron answered strikingly fast and then cleared his throat, averting his face for a moment, “I’m sorry, but that place somehow just gives me the creeps. I remember that I’ve visited it a few times with… in my childhood, but I never quite liked it. Can’t really explain why, though.”

A fond smirk curled the priests lips at the thought of little Saewron, warily peeking at the carnies from behind his mothers skirts while other children raced about carelessly.

“Well, there are some wild rumors that argue Silas Darkmoon is an Old God in disguise, since the symbol of the Fair resembles their typical slit eye”, he offered as an explanation.

“Really?!”, the rogue exclaimed, and then shrugged, “I guess that shouldn’t surprise me in our current situation. But it sounds rather unlikely. I don’t think N’Zoth would simply tolerate the competition.”

“Yeah, me neither”, the priest agreed, before they finally set off to the infirmary.

–.o.O.o.–

“Where’s Tulu, by the way?”, Luthir asked, to his disgrace only now noticing the odd absence of the cheerful little fox.

Simultaneously with their emergence from the Void portal onto the other island, a bright lightning flashed across the sky, almost turning its deep purple to blue.

“I’ve no idea”, Saewron admitted, “Since we’ve more or less taken up residence in Stormwind she’s disappeared a few times already.”

Luthir’s surprise must have been clearly written on his face, because the rogue added soothingly:

“Nothing to worry about. She always returns a few hours later and comes looking for me at the keep or the inn where we are staying.”

Soon they arrived at the spacious marquee that hosted the infirmary and were greeted by High Priestess Kayline, who promptly beckoned them to follow her in-between the two rows of cots to an area slightly apart from the zone for patients.

Luthir’s excitement, up until now diligently contained, suddenly spiked. He couldn’t tell any more than Saewron what the outcome of Kayline’s research was; he’d only been involved in some minor experiments regarding the ingredients his friend had used for his potions, but not in the actual testing. Obviously he’d overlooked the non-research-related signs though.

The material of the priestess’ long robes gave a faint rustle from the swing as she halted and turned in front of them. The rogue, after letting his eyes wander across their surroundings, rose to speak softly even before the High Priestess said a single word related to the matter.

“I guess, since you deliberately moved us out of anybody’s earshot, your verdict isn’t a positive one?”

The question put a sad smile on Kayline’s lips. “I’m afraid so. I don’t want to risk raising any false hopes in people listening to us,” she confirmed and then elaborated, “I’ll keep this brief. If you want to have an extensive look at the test results, I can get you the paperwork later, but in conclusion: on one side, your admittedly very skillfully crafted potions only work on us ren’dorei, since one has to be physically affected by the Void to make their mental effect work.”

Luthir, having assumed something like that already, nodded silently to himself, as Kayline moved on to her second argument.

“On the other side, and that’s the crucial point”, she took a short breath and continued faster, obviously feeling rather awkward, “they are highly poisonous, so I deeply hope you haven’t handed those potions to anybody else yet, because – assuming you truly use them yourself – I have no idea why you haven’t noticed this so far”, a short, constrained laugh escaped her, “We completely lack any druids or paladins in our ranks, so we were especially lucky that we at least had a monk at hand to quickly detox our test subject.”

Luthir didn’t even consider for a second that his friend could have lied for some unknowable reason, hence the suddenly alarmed look on Saewron’s face only left one conclusion:

“You already gave them to somebody else?!”

Following his question, the priestess eyed the other male void elf worriedly, but to their relief he shook his head.

“No, but almost. I offered them to Naethir, the day I first met him after his resurrection”, the rogue explained in a slightly breathy voice, and added, addressing himself more to Luthir then to Kayline: “That was the first time I even thought about their potential use for others.”

His older death knight brother. So he had been the reason behind Saewron’s change of mind. His friend had already confessed to him that, at first, he’d been too embarrassed by his further trick to circumvent the necessity of mastering the ren’endal, that he hadn’t even thought about telling anyone else about his discovery. A close call in that case. Although, maybe being a death knight would have changed the effect of the potion, too? The unanswered question made Luthir’s fingers itch in anticipation of the next possible option to test his theory, but Kayline’s voice brought him back to the present.

“Good”, she continued in a stern tone, “Since we’ve clarified that; do you have any clue why you aren’t affected by the poisonous aspect of the potions in the same way as our test subjects? Initially I assumed it could be linked to the fact that you are a rogue, but my inquiry in that regard was unsatisfying.”

“Hem”, Saewron unconsciously scratched his goatee and pondered for a spell, “Maybe your assumption wasn’t that far off. Usually a rogue learns not only to craft his own poisons, but also its antidotes – in case an accident happens. Some rogues – including myself – take this a step further and dose themselves with their poisons to eventually become immune.”

Startled, Luthir eyed the young void elf beside him, as if this unexpected information would let him suddenly see his friend in a different light. Up to this point he hadn’t estimated Saewron to be one of these more... dedicated kind of rogues.

“My and initially also Orthorin’s teacher was a very cautious sin’dorei… maybe even a little paranoid. I assume that I’ve been in touch with an above-average number of poisons during my apprenticeship. Maybe my body has developed some sort of cross-immunity over time… or has simply become used to dealing with all sorts of poisons.”

That was a possible explanation, not only for the strange reaction of Saewron’s body to his own potions, but also for his unusually… extreme behavior.

Kayline thoughtfully tapped the tip of her nose with one of her lean fingers, before she uttered the same conclusion: “That’s an interesting theory, indeed. I’d like to take a blood sample from you to do some testing hereof, if you don’t mind?”

–.o.O.o.–

When they stepped outside the infirmary again, Saewron still pressed a small piece of cloth to the spot on the inside of the crook of his left arm, where Kayline’s needle had previously pierced his skin. Lost in their thoughts, they only walked a short distance off from the marquee, until the sounds from the infirmary behind them faded away.

The High Priestess was right, it looked as if Saewron’s potions weren’t suitable for the masses. Not even only for the ren’dorei. For an unstable patient who was at risk of being overcome by the powers of the Void, there was no time to make the potions work, if one first had to take to the regular consumption of poisons to withstand their harmful effect. Maybe in an absolute emergency, if to accidentally kill the patient was worth the risk. Or in case a short moment of relief was enough for the patient to regain his composure, before the effect of the potions had to be dispelled again.

Saewron beside him gave off a huff. “I guess it simply would have been too good to be true. Imagine! I would have actually done something good for our kin.”

The bitterness in his voice made Luthir’s heart ache and he immediately knew the reason behind it. He turned to face his friend, who still stared down at the crook of his arm without actually seeing it. The faint bleeding of the puncture site had surely stopped quite a while ago. The priest stepped forward and cupped the rogues chin in his hand, gently pushing it upwards until their eyes met.

“Don’t let your twin’s attitude bother you like this”, he didn’t ease his hold when Saewron tried to avert his gaze once more. “You don’t owe the ren’dorei anything. Nothing. Do you hear me?”, he emphasized gently but firmly. Only when he spotted a spark of consent in Saewron’s eyes, he drew back.

The younger void elf stayed motionless for a brief moment, then gave a slight shudder and rubbed his upper arms before pulling down his left sleeve.

“I know”, he sighed, color rising in his cheeks while he glanced back at the infirmary. “It’s still disappointing though.”

Luthir nodded wisely. “Sure, but Kayline is probably still going to figure out a way to get something more out of your discovery.”

Maybe some of their other ghostblades, who were potentially already partly accustomed to some poisons, could start to experiment with them. As spies in enemy territory they were most likely to find themselves in a situation – like being captured and badly tortured – that put them at risk of losing control over the whispers without such a tool.

“I hope so”, the rogue grunted and shook his head dismissively, “Alas! I probably just got more frustrated than I should have, since I’m already in a bad mood in respect of tomorrow.”

That made Luthir prick up his ears. “Oh? And why’s that?”

“I’ll have to ignore my books for a day”, Saewron explained with a self-mocking smile, “I’m running low on gold, so I’ll have to haul my ass to Uldum or the Vale to earn some coin for a change. Otherwise I’ll have to move out of the Golden Keg and I don’t think I’ll find a cheaper inn any closer to the library.”

“Dear! That’s a bother, indeed”, Luthir chuckled, pleased by the fact that his friend seemed to have regained his spirits.

“Ay! But enough talk of me. How’s your business doing? Are you feeling more comfortable with your healing by now?”, Saewron asked.

Luthir was aware that his friend only meant well, but in turn, now his mood dropped. He drew a face. “Oh please don’t remind me of that”, he sighed still way more dramatic than he actually felt.

“That bad?”, the rogue immediately inquired sympathetically, but also – as intended – with an amused twitch visible at the corners of his mouth.

“Worse! I think the next time I’ll find myself in the same team again as those poor souls, they will beg me _not_ to do the healing.”

“Now you’re exaggerating.”

“Well, a little mayhaps”, the priest admitted with a canny smile, “I managed, but it was still that frustrating! I initially wanted to stay attuned to discipline spells, but it only took a few skirmishes and I felt completely overwhelmed already. Basically I like how you can turn harming a foe into healing for you allies, but the others simply suffered far more damage than I was able to compensate that way.”

He cringed internally at the memory of the panic he’d felt, when – back in the dungeon they had started to explore – an enemy mage had released a mighty area-of-effect-spell and he himself as well as his teammates from the special forces had suddenly taken a huge amount of damage. The memory of his feeling was met by a gleeful snickering of the whispers and Luthir generously granted them their pleasure, dwelling a moment longer on the dreadful but overcome feeling. Luckily their foe had depleted his mana in the attack, because the priest would never have been able to heal them all back up fast enough, if they had been hit by yet another spell like that and his shields alone hadn’t been enough to absorb the damage.

“I switched to holy afterwards and I felt much more comfortable that way, but it was also terribly boring”, he shrugged, “All I did for the rest of the dungeon was to cast Flash Heals and some Renews. Theoretically there are so many interesting spells in the repertoire of a holy priest, but they all felt inefficient in comparison.”

“Maybe you just need some more experience as a discipline healer”, Saewron proposed encouragingly.

“Most likely”, Luthir agreed, “But I’ve decided that it’s not worth the trouble”, he drew a hand through the silvery gray hair that fell over his right shoulder and curled one of the strands around his right index finger, “In the end, gold doesn’t suit me anyways.” He laughed, spreading his arms and embracing the caress of the Void for a moment, that turned his frame a translucent purple and blue. “So shadow it remains.”

“I guess, I can’t argue with that”, the rogue commented jestingly, mimicking the priest’s move by pulling a Cloak of Shadows around himself, which made them both chuckle.

“About your gold problem”, Luthir picked up their previous topic soon after, “You know, I could always put in a good word for you with the Magister. I know, we currently aren’t officially recruiting for our research teams, but I’m sure he would be willing to make an exception for you. After all, you just proved that you are a very skilled alchemist.”

Saewron made a rather displeased sound and commented: “One that – for the future – has to take into account that his body acts weird on poisons.”

“So it would seem”, Luthir admitted unperturbedly, before he pressed on: “But what do you think of my offer? You know, it would be fun to have you around here.”

The rogue seemed to struggle with himself and didn’t answer immediately. Saewron probably felt like he couldn’t accept the offer, because it would look like he was unfairly favored over other ren’dorei. He’d already felt bad about the Magister having a hand in his election for the escort mission regarding Lady Jaina Proudmoore back then. Which was completely groundless. Invitingly the priest added:

“I think, you would also get along well with Umbric. He’s excellent company to talk shop.” Strangely, that comment seemed to further increase the rogue’s hesitation though.

“I… don’t know. I’ll think on it”, he hedged a definite answer, blushing once more, “But for now I should head back to Stormwind. Tulu will probably be back soon and I don’t know how she reacts if she can’t find me anywhere in the city.”

After that, they quickly made their farewells and Saewron vanished into the void portal back to the Alliance capital. Luthir bemusedly lingered a moment, looking into the direction where his friend had disappeared. Somehow the rogue had acted strange during their whole meeting today; unusually tense and easy to embarrass.

Just then, the Magister’s voice rang out from not far off and caught Luthir’s attention. Right! He had to tell Umbric about the new knowledge they had gained from their conference with the High Priestess, that would surely interest him. Swiftly, the priest turned and hurried off to catch up with the other leader of the ren’dorei.


End file.
